Established in 1963 as one of the first medical education units in the United States, the division conducts educational programs for four different types of students: medical students; graduate students in education; those teaching in medical and other health professional education settings; and physicians in the postgraduate study of medical education.

The division’s primary mission is to enhance the quality of medical education by serving as a resource of educational expertise for planning, developing, and evaluating medical education programs and conducting educational research. Similar activities and programs are conducted with various government and private organizations outside the university.

Major research and training interests of the faculty include the instruction of lay persons to be used as standardized patients for teaching and evaluation, case-based learning, pre-med programs for minority students and interactive video systems.

Administratively, the division is an independent unit in Educational Affairs in the Keck School of Medicine. The faculty hold appointments in the Department of Pediatrics. The division also employs 10 staff and research assistants. All activities of the division are conducted at the USC Health Sciences campus.

Fellowship Programs

Teaching and Learning

A Teaching and Learning Fellowship program is offered to health care professionals who are engaged in teaching. The primary goals of this fellowship are to provide participants with multiple ways to teach and evaluate effectively. Through seminars, fellows will gain increased understanding of basic principles of teaching and learning and achieve the skills necessary to apply principles effectively.

Educational Leadership

An Educational Leadership Fellowship program is available for health care professionals with two primary goals: to prepare participants for understanding and serving in positions of leadership and enhance fellows’ personal and professional effectiveness. Seminars will explore transformational change, team and community formation, group dynamics, organizational culture and resources.

Health Professions Teachers

From time to time, the division offers special workshops or seminars in various subject areas related to the improvement of instruction. Division staff members are available to plan these special programs on request.

Master of Academic Medicine

The program addresses the unique population of medical and health professions faculty who are focused on leading the academic enterprise for health professionals at the undergraduate, graduate and continuing education levels. The six-semester program consists of 32 graduate units and employs a hybrid model, combining on-campus face-to-face sessions, blended with online course work. For more information, see here.

Postgraduate Program

Individually tailored programs of study in medical education are available to visiting postdoctoral fellows who wish to gain an understanding of principles, problems and practices in medical education. These visiting fellows may spend from a few weeks to a year in residence, participating in ongoing projects, seminars, readings and independent study.